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Filmtracks Recommends:
Buy it... if you own and enjoy Cliff Eidelman's Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country and seek his largest symphonic follow-up to that score. Avoid it... if you expect either a robust recording size or an unpredictable, non-traditional musical representation for the historical event. Filmtracks Editorial Review:
Eidelman's composition is rich with theme and texture, both seaworthy and religious. Its ability cover both necessary bases is admirable, and while he relies upon a robust orchestral performance for the representation of the high seas, he employs a male choir for the Catholic element. The latter's influence on the score is one of the more interesting aspects of Eidelman's work here. Two hymnal cues, "Come O Come Emanuel" and "The Discovery (Gloria)," are merged with Eidelman's own original themes. While the Latin choral performances in these cues may sound familiar to the hymns you would hear in a church, Eidelman has altered their underlying structure to fit his themes for the film. It could be possible that the hymnal inspiration guided all of Eidelman's score in some fashion, but most score fans won't care enough to notice. The title theme is the highlight of Christopher Columbus: The Discovery, heard in "The Great Sea," "The Voyage," and with victorious spirit in "A Hero's Welcome (Epilogue)." That last cue is a powerhouse worthy of any compilation, not only emulating the grand posture of the final cues from Star Trek VI, but throwing in a singular pan pipe or recorder for one gorgeous statement of the theme. Several of the cues handle scenes with a light hand, curiously underplaying the music's role; most of these portions are for the first "Spain" act of the film, and these moments are easily the score's greatest weakness on paper. Far more disruptive is a sparse performance by Seattle Symphony Orchestra, used likely in a cost-saving gesture and unfortunately contributing solely to the diminished scope of performance that haunts this recording. This composition is very deserving of a more meaty performance, though the two choral recordings (the latter of which will remind of Patrick Doyle's famous Henry V choral piece) are well enunciated with truncated lyrics from the traditional hymns. If this score had been recorded in a cathedral, as John Ottman has done in Seattle, perhaps a more vibrant and spiritual effect would have been achieved. In any case, Christopher Columbus: The Discovery is a fine effort by Eidelman, who often wrote strong scores at the time, only to have many of them thwarted by undersized ensembles. A relatively obscure release by the Varèse Sarabande label offers 43 minutes of music that would turn out to be Eidelman's last boisterous adventure score before fading into obscurity himself. ****
The insert includes the following note by Kevin Mulhall:
In one amusing anecdote, Eidelman relates how the process of writing the score mirrored the international flavor of Columbus' adventure itself. While Eidelman was composing in Los Angeles, the director and the co-producer were filming in Portugal, the editor was cutting in London, and the executive producers were working in Florida. What's more, the recording sessions were to be held with the Seattle Symphony Orchestra. Despite the potential for chaotic breakdown in communications, Eidelman reports that the unusual nature of the collaboration helped rather than hindered the creative process. Because John Glen and the Salkinds trusted him, Eidelman was given considerable freedom to conceive and develop his musical ideas and dramatic associations. After listening to the music on this compact disc, it should be clear to everyone that the positive environment effected by the filmmakers and the composer has resulted in a powerful, melodically inventive score that grants Christopher Columbus a spot near the apex of Eidelman's pyramid of musical accomplishments." | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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